Adelaide-based St Andrew's hospital is one of the most progressive medical facilities in the world consistently leading in new technology adoption. Most recently, St Andrews decided to move to a Cisco Medical-Grade Network (MGN) to continue the development of its digital future. The Cisco MGN is an end-to-end networking framework designed to support any application and any device. The hospital has also rolled-out a Cisco VoIP platform to enhance communication between nurses, doctors and patients.

In an announcement at Cisco Live in Melbourne last week, St. Andrew's announced partnering with KPMG and Data Mobility Voice to deploy a network including Cisco Catalyst? 3750-X Series Switches in the core, distribution and edge to support IP telephony and digital theatre environments. The technology roll-out is extensive and stretches well beyond one hospital building. The Cisco MGN encompasses areas such as campus networks, clinics, remote clinicians, and data centres.

One of the constant themes in everything that St Andrew's hospital does is being a leader in both medical innovation and being an early adopter of new technology innovation. The Cisco MGN has enhanced the Hospital's reputation for leadership by delivering reliability and compatibility with any device -future-proofing the network for further technology advancements, either medical or technological.

In the future St Andrew's hopes to implement more innovative IP based solutions. Video streaming direct from operating theatres to University medical schools, IP video surveillance and interactive menus for patients will all be explored - and the MGN from Cisco truly gives them the scope to consider such initiatives.

It's no accident that St Andrew's Hospital has such a stellar reputation. By taking advantage of some of the most advanced technology available, the Hospital is supporting its current and future vision for service excellence as South Australia's leading private hospital.

While at Cisco Live in Melbourne last week, Peter Cooper, Director of Engineering & Support Services for St. Andrews Hospital, participated in a customer showcase panel discussion with media and industry analysts. Check out the photos here.